UPDATE 1-UK Stocks-Factors to watch on July 17

* ROYAL MAIL: Britain’s Royal Mail Plc said on Tuesday some customers remained uncertain about the new European data privacy law as the company reported a decline in the number of letters it delivered in its first quarter.

* ARBUTHNOT: Britain’s Arbuthnot Banking Group Plc reported a jump in first-half pretax profit and said it would set up a specialist secured lending unit to provide short-term secured loans to property businesses and entrepreneurs.

* FINSBURY: Finsbury Food Group is on track to hit its profit target for the year, despite a perfect storm of high commodity prices and rising wages putting pressure on margins, the Telegraph reported. bit.ly/2LbI597

* OIL: Brent crude prices rose from a three-month low on Tuesday after more oil workers went on strike in Norway, supporting a market that has been dominated by oversupply issues in recent days.

* GOLD: Gold prices were steady on Tuesday, as the U.S. dollar remained largely unchanged ahead of U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell’s first congressional testimony.